Improvement in working liming-vats in tanneries



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

L. WOODBURY FISKE, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

IMPROVEMENT IN WORKING LIMING-VATS IN TANNERIES.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 12,369, dated February 6,1855.

To all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, L. WOODBURY FIsKE, of Louisville, Jefferson county,Kentucky, have invented a new and useful Improvement in UsingLiming-Vats; and I hereby declare that the following is a full, clear,and exact description of my said improvements, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, and to the gures and letters of referencemarked thereon, in which the same letters designate the same parts inall the drawings, viz:

The nature' of my said improvement consists in using close-covered vatsfor limin g and unhairing hides and skins for the following objects,viz: to render the process of liming as now generally practiced bytanners, as well as my own unhairing-soak, more rapid, efficacious, andeconomical; to cause the hides and skins to come from the vats moreplump, heavy, fair, and free from lime in the pores than has been thecase hitherto, at the same time preventing the forming of the pellicleon the surface of the liquid in the vats, the deposits of carbonate oflime and consequent loss of strength, and the labor and expense offrequent changes in limes thereby induced. This I effect by placing oversaid limes, except When open for changes and handlings, an air-tightcover made and applied as follows, reference being had to the annexeddrawings, figures, and letters, making a part Vof this specification,viz:

First. On the plates or tops of the vats, which should be smooth orlevel, whether of wood or stone, near the outside of said plates, y

or at least six or eight inches from the inner edges thereof, fastenfour strong staples of, say, three-eighths by one-and-one-fourth-inchiron opposite each other, as shown atF F F F, Figures 2 and 3. Thedimensions of the staples should be about those marked in the iiguresabove referred to and in Fig. 4.

Second. Make for vat-covers platforms eight or ten inches larger in eachdirection than the opening of the vats to be covered, of soundltongue-and-grooved boards closely laid and secured by Wrought-nails totwo battens, C C C C, Fig. 2.

Third. If the tops of the vats or plates be smooth and level and theplatforms new, they may -be laid without anything under them.`

If otherwise, some strips of packing, canvas, or coarse cloth wet may belaid evenly around on the top of the vat and the platform laid on them.

Fourth. It is pressed down and secured by two stiff straight woodenbars, D D D D, the opposite ends of which pass into the staples F F F F,and pressed down by driving the hardwood wedges E E E E, Figs. 2 and 3,over them and under the staples.

What I claim is- Using a close-covering for liming and unhairing vats,in the manner and for the purposes set forth.

L. WOODBURY FISKE.

Vitnesses ALEX. DUvALL, J. A. M. MORRIS.

